Detroit Auto Show 2016: Expect 'major' driverless car news

Ontario's ministerof transportation predictsauto manufacturers and technology companies will make "majorannouncements"next week about the future ofdriverless cars during an annual auto show in Detroit.

Steven Del Ducais aiming to position Ontario asCanada's centre for self-driving vehicle technology, with the province now allowing testing of driverless cars as of Jan. 1.

"I think we're going to see more stuff flowing from the Detroit Auto Show in the nextcoupleofdaysintermsof major announcements around this technology," Del Duca said in an interview on CBC Radio's Metro Morning on Tuesday.

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The North AmericanInternationalAutoShow runs from Jan. 11-24in Detroit.

Ontario's Ministry of Transportation started, as of Jan.1,accepting applications from companies to test automated vehicles on any street, road or highway in the province.

Companies want the chance to test self-driving vehicles in a cold climate, DelDucasaid.

"This is technology that is coming on the scenein a pretty fast and furious way," DelDucatold Metro Morning host MattGalloway.

"We know there's tons of excitement and interest, we know there is a lot of buzzoutthere in the industry." He saidhe expects the first roadtests will happen "over the next number of months."

The provincialgovernmentsays the pilot project will allow thenearly 100 companies and institutions alreadyinvolved in theautomated vehicle industry in Ontarioto conduct research and development in the province rather than elsewhere.

No applications have been submitted yet. "But we do anticipate applications to come in,"DelDuca'sspokesperson, PatrickSearle, said in an email.

'Significant' potential fordisruptingeconomy

DelDucasaid the technologyhas "wonderful future potential" toimprovetraffic flow andreduceaccidents.But he admitted it could have negative effects, such as putting people who drive for a living out of work.

"The potential fordisruptionin the economy is fairlysignificantover the long term," hesaid.

DelDucasaid it was important for Ontario to be "at the leading edge" of developing driverless car technologybecause of theauto sector's role in the province'seconomy.

"We wanted to be in a position to take advantage of the potential job creation thatmightflow as a result of this technology in years to come," he said.

StevenWaslander,thedirector of the Waterloo Autonomous Vehicles Laboratory, is applauding the province's move to allow testing.

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"We have a large manufacturingbase here working in the automotive industry,"Waslandersaid Monday in an interview on Metro Morning. "And to keep that going and get the next generation of vehicles in place, we need this kind of forward-looking legislation."

"Given sufficient resources and given enough engineering talent, you can build a self-driving car," saidWaslander, also an assistant professor of engineeringat the University of Waterloo.

"What we now need to prove is that it's safe at the scale that we drive cars regularly,and that it's affordable."